i've been there i know the way

December One already. Winter is happening right now, and promises to attend the final First Friday Indie Market of the year this Friday. Same place and times, so come on out. This marks a year for me of doing these shows, and I look forward to next season already. I especially look forward to maybe a break to get ahead. How that might feel I have yet to know. As I type this, ONCE AGAIN, I have hot kilns at the studio. The big kiln fired today, and finished up an hour ago. I immediately put one last bowl into the little kiln and got it going. To have a stock of pots must really be a great place to be in.
Here is the poster for Friday, and like it says, Have a Handmade Holiday. Give the gift of a local craft, it means so much more!


Kim Mchone and I are again sharing space at the Market. So come do your Christmas shopping with all of us in downtown, AND enjoy the festival of lights Friday night! Kim's terrariums are really something special, and I have good feelings about what is transpiring in the kiln right now.

As of late, making pots for this and designing pot ideas on paper have dominated. As much as anything can when there is a two year old head of household. Will continues to amaze us every day. He hit the big 2.0 November 18, and seems to somehow know that he is the big boy of the house. As he grows each day, our hearts seem to grow with him.
Saturday my brother Clay and I took him out to the Old Mill of Guilford north of GSO, for grits and flour. While we did not get gingerbread on this trip, it seemed to start the Christmas season for me. Leading Will by the hand into the mill, I remembered the countless trips I made out there in years past with my Dad, and felt as happy as I did sad to be taking my son for the first time. Having Clay with us made it all the better. We never really mentioned it until later, but I felt like this was a bit of a milestone, reviving and reliving a bit of our past and passing it along to Will. Sappy, yes, I know. I am now able to forgive myself my maudlin moments as things take on a new relevance with a child. The best part how much Will loved the place, especially the yard. The landscape is plain and southern, at once industrial and rural, and perfect. Here he is, all boy, all business, all the time.




So, there it is, about all I can muster for now. As Christmas approaches, I plan to throw pots for gifts every chance I get. Hope to get some of those ideas on paper and in my head into the clay, off the wheel and into the kiln.
The next big pottery event for me is two Sundays from now we are firing the wood kiln at Roberts'. The last one two weeks ago went perfectly, and some of the pots were the best things I have ever seen. I could only hope to feel so excited about my own stuff one day. Stop by The English Potter on 705 in Seagrove and see what all the fuss is about. Better hurry!
So next post will include some firing picks from this upcoming firing. I am thinking about documenting the process from wet pot thru each step until fired pots are unloaded.
To wrap it up, if anyone happens to stumble upon and read this, hope to see you Friday night in downtown GSO!

autumn waded seven seas and the colors come another

fall is finally in full effect! my favorite time of year. everything seems much more real and alive when the air is cool. the color palette just seems so perfect to me. i always feel like the whole point of summer is to grow into fall. and then fall into winter.
the crisp mornings are such a nice way to start the days. this fall seemed like a particularly long wait to me.
these thoughts should be reflected, with any luck, in the glaze choices firing in the big kiln right now. i decided to give the matte yellow i was all about in the spring another shot. over the summer i seemed to do something wrong in firing or application that made it the biggest disappointment for me after that first test firing.
i did a test firing earlier this week, and it looked great. finger crossed, breath held.
i have a deep green that i have finally figured out is picking up iron from the clay and going darker than i want. shoulda thought harder earlier.
to round it out, a raw sienna and a new temmoku are all shiny wet and red hot at this very moment.
all this is for the big weekend coming on fast.
the First Friday Indie Market, downtown GSO starts at 4 pm and runs thru 9 pm Friday night. should be a great one, we are apparently packing more vendors than ever before into the parking lot. Come on out; this is always a fun event!!!





















And then......Saturday, 11 am to 5 pm, I, along with many other vendors, will be at the Shop Local Festival on State Street, again in GSO. This is my first time at this event, really looking forward to it. This one should be lots of fun as well. The weather should be nice; I am hoping for a clear and cool day. Pottery buying weather!!!




















My love of this season has grown and taken on new meaning with Will. He is already showing a love for the outdoors, and an interest in animals and the natural world. Our newest thing is the Sunday Gator ride with Grandpa. I think we all look forward to being together, touring around, watching as Will takes it all in. We have been picking apples for the last few rides, and Will can make the smallest, knottiest apple last forever. I find something really special about picking these unknown variety from a family tree. The apples look horrible, until you bite into the whitest flesh, which is surprisingly sweet. Maybe the fact that these are just some random fruit from some unexpected source makes them sweeter. Either way, they make Will happy!
Halloween was a wonderful day. We spent a few hours in McLeansville at a corn maize owned by some high school friends. Will loved everything except the actual maize. The pics below show a happy guy, one who bring us more happiness than I could have ever imagined.
The skunk outfit for trick or treating was perfect for him, and went much more smoothly than we expected. His first active Halloween was spent in downtown Star. He was a little confused about the whole thing, but handled it like a champ. Next year we reckon he will have his own opinion about what he dresses as, so this one was on us.
Off to check that hopefully finished kiln, and to bed. Big weekend ahead!!!

how come i end up where i started?

so this has been the shortest lightning cycle between Indie Markets. Tuesday night before Friday night and i am still miserable hot faced from watching the kiln make the final 14 degree push to cone 6. i like being there for the death of it, as Robt. calls it. somehow ice cream seems a better toast than beer this time.
The October Indie Market poster is below. The weather looks promising, and the fact that I am sharing a booth this time with good friend Kim McHone assures that fun will be had by all. Her terrariums are really something special, so take a look:

http://terrariumstogo.blogspot.com

I pulled the kiln temp back a bit this time, hoping to keep some of the untameable glaze surfaces in check. The Floating Red that looks always oh so nice in the test kiln has been too runny, too glossy, and too Red Planet in the big kiln. In addition, I have tests of a nice green called Spearmint, and something called Waxwing Brown (!). These names kill me. Today we had some color changes from plain ole standard PMS colors, a medium blue and a golden yellow, to something called Sierra and Somethinganother Blue. To sell socks. whatev stay out of the paint department at Lowes.
anyhoo, i really hope this red agrees with the thinner application i tried, and the slightly lower temp. i also have the VC Turquoise i have been into lately.

i will have some coffee mugs this time, along with a new cup/tea bowl design, which i think is pretty cool.

so, provided that this firing goes well, this Friday should be a good Indie Market. come on downtown 4p-9p or so.....hope to see you there!

things get around to taking place...

Sunday night, another mad dash to the finish line of September's First Friday Indie Market, in five short days...one, possibly two glazes firings to do in five short days. and that means done and cool in time to pack Friday morning. i feel pretty good about this rush this time. no new glazes, just application tweaks to the last round. the bisque kiln is cooling now...on at 11 am, off and down to 1435 by 7:30. today was bisque and biscuits...Cyndi and I have been planning a grandma southern meal for about a week...and today was the day...green beans, mashed potatoes, Cyndi's amazing fried okra that I picked from the garden today, my bachelor biscuits and yeast gravy. Will seemed to like it just fine...I look forward to the day he can know the joys of Texas Pete...today was my first time having it on okra...highly recommended!!!
My last post mindset was to make bowls in stacks. That really didn't happen. Lidded jars got in the way, as did plates. Robert gave me tips over the phone from out of state. The bad news is that I broke the best of the bunch hastily, and sloppily loading the kiln this morning. I handled it better than I might have in the past...just some lost mud after all. Right.

So, if anyone is actually reading this, come out Friday night to the Indie Market in downtown GSO. Lots of fun! The poster this month features a painting by my friend and chief marketeer Dara Morgan. Nice one! Here is the poster:



and now for something completely......cool!
the pic below is of the first of my pots to go out west. Friend and fellow Indie Marketer, Scott Neely, who did last months Indie Market's poster, wanted some cups for friends on a rafting trip. Here is one of MY cups, on some one's, (Scott's?) knee, in use whilst rafting down a river. Thank you, Scott!
And that is really the point of making pots...for them to be used, and better yet, for a special occasion; a convergence of friends. so maybe those cups will remind them of a fun and special trip with every future cup of coffee or whatever....nice...



and with that, i am off to bed. more to come this week, really.

no really.

where will we be when the summer's gone...???

that would be, for me, working in the studio as if it were a real job. i am still in shock that today was Cyndi's first day back to school, without kids yet...and that my last post was in that short week of spring we had before summer started this long boil. since then, way back when, Will has grown in so many ways. More words, more climbing, more everything. Every day is sheer joy and amazement. He is sweet beyond belief, holding our hands and giving us sweet baby kisses when we least expect it. In the next moment he is off on a mission, all business all the time, I like to say about him.
In the blur of summer, I have:
made lots of pots, tested lots of glazes, grown, picked and eaten tons of tomatoes, gone to Tomatopalooza, spent some time on Oak Island, attempted to become as smart my new phone, participated in the August First Friday Indie Market, read Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential, tweaked glazes, reclaimed clay, met Val Cushing, worked more than I would like to, saw some snakes, sweated, and am now ready to the weather to break!!!
So as we dwindle down the final hot weeks, I really hope I can get into the swing of posting, taking pics, and getting some pots made, photographed, and sold into the hand of people who will use them.
For the August Indie Market I did another whirlwind work schedule, firing twice in three days. I wonder how it is to produce pottery at some sort of relaxed and seemingly normal pace?
The pots seems to be better with each kiln load. I spent most of the summer making bottles and vases. These are things I like, and like to make. The basic premise is simple, but with the smallest tweaks and variations they can become their own distinct pot.
I have been pretty lucky, I think, on the glaze front. After testing a few dozen over several firings in the small kiln, only a few have I really put out of mind.
Some are still being tweaked, mainly for colorant strength, or viscosity. Should have nicked a Zahn cup in days past. I am really trying to work the glazes down to about ten to twelve I really like, and stick with those for a while. The bad news is, the more you dig into them, the wider the possibilities become. Every glaze begats a glaze. "and when i fell on the floor, i drank more"...
After weeks of decorative shapes, I have started back on functional stuff. This will mean more bowls, bowls, and more bowls. While this might sound a bit boring, it really is not at all. If you really thing about a bowl, its size and grip in the hand, and how a spoon might glide along the inner angles, it all seems like a big deal. The difference between eating from a good bowl and a crap one is as important and relelvant as the food in it.
Other than bowls, I plan to focus on jars, plates and mugs. These shapes will keep me busy for a good while.
The September First Friday Indie Market is fast approaching, so while I may be quiet for a couple of days, I will be posting pics of my progress as the market gets closer. If anyone happens to actually stumble in here and read this, hope to see you September 3 downtown GSO. I will be posting the poster soon.
Here is a smattering of photos from the summer....

i should worked much harder...i should have just not bothered

so that sums up my thoughts at this very moment. since that last ancient post, i have done two rounds of glaze tests. the first round was a large bowl with a pie slice approach of 12 glazes.

i'll never make that mistake again.....no.......

that bowl died an appropriate death in a studio accident that took a few more pieces out. in addition to the history, geology, math, chemistry, etc you get with ceramics, the physics of balancing pots on poorly supported shelves is a crucial lesson to learn. and painful. oh well.

so the nest round, fired off Sunday night, was fantastic. 14 glazes, 28 bowls, the small test kiln left to me by my father......and success. Robt called it a home run, which was pretty nice to hear.

so two hours past my normal working dad bedtime and a kiln mostly full is going now.
past the Battle of Hastings a half hour ago, it should be into the Reconstruction by now. all this historical babble is just relevant dates being tied to temps...pretty cool, and not my idea; this comes form aforementioned Englishman, who i must thank for all the help and encouragement. go see him, four miles through the light in Seagrove on 705, the English Potter. discounts for mentioning this ad.

not.

anyhoo, no pics to post of anything i have done. but what i am doing is this:






The Shindig on the Square this Sunday, May 2, downtown GSO. and this is why i have been mixing, glazing, testing, firing and all over again like a mad man as of late. all the whilst trying to be the best husband and dad i can. Cyndi is wonderfully supportive, and Will is growing sweeter, and larger by the day. I love and appreciate you both.

The plan is finish this firing tonight, peek in on the way to work tomorrow. Hope the big kiln works out as well as the test kiln. I suspect sleep will be difficult again tonight. Sunday night I dreampt that when I opened the test kiln, there were piles of dust where the test cups were. Tonight I may dream of bigger piles. It all starts over again with glazing and loading Friday night, start firing early Saturday am, build racks, unload early Sunday, and off to the Shindig. Wish me luck. Better yet, come out and see what happened. Mention this blog and receive a hug.

and then..........

Next Friday night, the event looks like this:



and look who got lucky! my name on the poster! GREAT BIG THANKS to Chris and Mandy, whom I have yet to meet, the great minds behind this event. i feel pretty honored to see my name in print on that there poster. looking forward to getting a couple of those. the loyal followers here, whomever you might be, know that i did the December First Friday event, which was way cool, way fun. This one can only be better, as it will be spring, and not a cold December night. So again, come to downtown GSO, where it all seems to be happening. 20 years ago, when I was 20, we could run around until the sun came up down there and not see another person. Funny.

So there it is. A lengthy post, and no pics to show. Next time, glaze test pics, pot pics, and whatever else I can come up with.

i've been on the shelf too long........

one more week of silence would take me to a full three months since my last post here. pretty bad, i have to admit. i can say much has happened, and i have actually made a bit of progress, but surely not three months worth. blame it on modern life. this whole having a job thing sure gets in the way of what we would like to be..........

a few things i have to say before i get to pottery.

the sad fact that we lost a dear niece, Sascha "Bella" Hoffmann in a tragic accident in February has really taken the wind out of all of our sails. all i really want to say here is if you love someone, anyone, tell them right now, because everything can change forever in a flash. the lyric that keeps playing in my mind...."you're like the setting sun, you shine and you're gone". Sasha, you will be loved and missed by us all.

the saving grace of spring coming is a great healer. Will and i took a walk Saturday morning, and his delight in his first daffodil was wonderful. no picture of that, but a great memory.

i do however, have these two shots of a spring day and the pure joy of boy and dog...









and with that, spring is indeed just about here....we started cleaning the garden up a bit this weekend, another year we are already behind when we just get going. it always seems to work out fine, so no worries on that point.

the good news is that 3.7.10 marked the date of my first electric bisque load. it took much longer that i expected to fill a kiln with nothing but my own work. Robert helped me load it, and we started the cycle at just before noon that day. i checked every hour, nearly on the hour all day long. around 7 Robert called and insisted a take a beer down and watch it shut off. not only to sort of make sure i still had a studio, but to celebrate this turning point for me. a pony High Life marked the event. how my tastes have changed......
a big thank you to Robert for the help, the instruction, and for making the point i should document all of this here.

so here you go....

just before i opened up...



top shelf, note clever side positioning of bottle, a lesson from Robt.




cone 06, way past flat!!!






and the final two shots of this first bisque firing; all the work i have managed to get done in the last several weeks, an hour here, and hour there...






let the glaze testing begin!!!